The essence of patent

Isn't patent a means for inventors to monopolize and get rich? Not really! The essence of patent is the enjoyment and opening of intellectual property rights! Patent is actually an agreement between a sovereign country and the inventor-the inventor must fully disclose his technology so that all mankind can learn, thus promoting the scientific and technological progress of the whole human society. In return for the inventor, the sovereign state allows the inventor to obtain the necessary economic exclusive rights for a period of time. Therefore, the core essence of patent is the enjoyment and openness of new technology. Anyone can look up information about China National Intellectual Property Administration and learn about the technology contributed by the inventor. Relatively speaking, economic monopoly is really just an incidental disease. Imagine that if there is no patent system, then all technology inventors will try their best to keep it secret for their own interests, and others may never know his technical details.

2. What kinds of patents are there in China?

There are three kinds of patents in China: invention patents, utility model patents and appearance patents. Some countries in the world have other types of patents. For example, some countries in Europe and America can register new varieties of animals and plants, while in China, new varieties of animals and plants cannot be registered. This is not because our laws are backward, but because there are other considerations, such as ethics.

3. What's the difference between the above patents?

The difference between patent application examination: there is a "substantive examination" link in the process of invention patent application. In this link, Patent examiners will consult the world's technical literature and existing patent technology to see whether the applied patent is original and practical. Invention patents that have passed the "substantive examination" are basically flawless. This is also the reason why it is difficult to apply for an "invention patent" and once it is applied, the gold content is high. There is no substantive examination link for utility model patents and appearance patents, so it is relatively easy to apply, but such patents are often sued invalid.

The difference of protection period: the exclusive protection period of invention patent is 20 years, and the exclusive protection period of utility model patent and appearance patent is 10 year.

There are some other differences that are not so critical, so I won't go into details here.

4. Is there any trick to quickly distinguish different types of patents?

In commercial propaganda, manufacturers usually mark their patent numbers in conspicuous positions. Experienced people will know what this patent is at a glance, so as to have a general judgment on the "gold content" of the product. Here's a trick for you! Take two patents of Shanghai Changfeng Information Technology Co., Ltd. as an example: 20161065164.0, 2017.50666.50666666676

Let's look at the top four, which are 20 16 and 20 17 respectively. That is to say, these two patents were filed on 20 16 and 20 17 respectively, and only three or four years have passed this year (2020). Obviously, these two patents are still in the protection period!

Then look at the fifth digit, which is 1 and 2 respectively. If the fifth digit is 1, it represents an invention patent; If it is 2, it represents a utility model patent;